How far to let a 6 month kitten roam?

[itsnothingoriginal]

I think I'm probably being rather PFK about my kitten now she's able to go out (2 weeks post op) but I'm trying to keep her in our garden for now. Despite my best attempts to cat proof it I strongly suspect she'll get out somehow as we have some 6ft fences with brushwood screening attached which she can climb up.

Problem is, if she does get up and over it would be much harder for her to get back. Should I try other cat proofing methods to keep her in the garden for longer or do other people just let their kittens get on with it??

[cozietoesie]

Forthcoming bad weather may help you (lots of nasty wind and rain) but I'd supervise at first and then let her get on with it. Lonecat has the effective tactic of letting them out hungry and then pinging the bowl after they've been out for the decided time. Oh - and keeping her in at nights is best given the dangers, especially for a liitle 'un.

In the end, though, you have to loose those apron strings if you're going to have an outside cat. And it's incredibly nerve-wracking. That first time you see their tail disappear over the wall and you start to imagine all sorts of dreadful perils.

[GemmaTeller]

The first time they disappear over the fence is nerve wracking!!

Try and let her stay out a bit longer each day and definately give her some treats / a big fuss when she comes back in.

Boy cat is now 2 and spends a lot of time over on the field but demands treats as soon as he comes in - but he does pop back in a few times a day.

We also have a cat curfew of 7pm in summer and as soon as it starts going dark in winter.

[itsnothingoriginal]

Thanks - will definitely keep her in at nights. We don't have a cat flap so we will need to get her in by bed time.

She's less interested in being out today as the grass is wet and it felt colder this morning!

She's been pretty good at coming back in when I've opened her cat food bag but we have a postage stamp size garden so she can hear it easily. Yes, I'll be a nervous wreck the first time she disappears over that fence

[hiddenhome]

You can get anti escape devices to attach to the top of the fence to prevents cats from getting out. This is what we're currently arranging having lost a third cat (two killed on the road, one currently missing).

[Putitonthelist]

Oh it's so hard letting then out!!

Our tabby is now 16 mnths old and it doesn't get any easier. She mainly stays in our garden but will jump over the fence into next door to sit next to their Buddha :-) My heart nearly stopped when I spotted her across the road from the front bedroom window last week!

We don't have a cat flap so she stays in all night. I usually let her out in the morning at 7ish and she'll come and go all day. We get her in at night by shaking Dreamies and she usually comes in straight away.

Good luck, I feel your pain!!

[itsnothingoriginal]

Glad it's not just me finding it hard to let go!

So sorry to hear about your cats hiddenhome - good luck with the garden cat proofing…

[Caitlin17]

I have a cat flap and don't lock it at night. The house is a Victorian terrace with high garden walls backing on to the back gardens of a similar layout. I have 4 cats, as far as I know 1 never goes farther than mine,2 occasionally go next door and 1 goes next door on both sides and over the wall on to the back gardens of the other street. I've lived here since 1990, first with 2 elderly cats I moved with, then 3 adult rescue cats all now sadly dead.I currently have 4, 1 I got as a kitten, 2 adult rescue cats and 1my son found as a stray kitten when he was at uni but who now lives with me. With all of them once they mastered the cat flap I let them get on with it.

One of them was a real rover. There is one gap in the terraces and he worked out how to travel about 9 gardens get over the wall at the gap and get on to the street at the front of the house. If he couldn't be bothered with the climb back he'd ask my nextdoor neighbour to let him though her house if I was out.